August.03.2012
Orrick Holters & Elsing has advised Germany's largest shopping and leisure center CentrO in its €650 million refinancing - making it Germany's largest single-object financing of the year. German insurance giant Allianz provided €325 million of the overall facility with German banks Aareal Bank, acting as facility agent and lender, and Helaba, acting as co-agent, security agent and lender, each providing €162.5 million.
"This transaction marks the first major real estate lending in Germany financed by a combined lender consortium of insurances and banks," said Michael Alberts, one of the lead partners on the deal. "The transaction sets new market standards as one of the first international real estate refinancings with a structure fully in line with the rules on German covered bonds (full “Pfandbrief” eligibility)."
CentrO, valued at approximately €1.3 billion, is located in the heart of the Ruhrgebiet, one of the largest metropolitan regions in Western Europe. Orrick has been advising CentrO since its entry into the German market 20 years ago. In 2011, we advised on the sale of 50% of CentrO to Canadian pension fund CPP-Investment Group.
The Orrick team included Düsseldorf real estate partners Michael Alberts and Peter Zimmermann, Frankfurt banking and debt capital markets partner Christoph Wetzler, Düsseldorf real estate of counsel Peter Vocke, Düsseldorf real estate associates Sonja Böhmer, Kathrin Fischer, Christoph Nohles and Martina Schaffer and Frankfurt banking and debt capital markets associate Till Naruisch.